New Order - Ceremony

I Love 1981 - pt. 10
Arising from the ashes of Joy Division after lead singer had Ian Curtis topped himself, New Order released their debut single Ceremony in March 1981. Written when they were still JD with a Curtis half-finished lyric and a full on guitar sound (not a keyboard or drum machine in sight), it remains one of their best and most striking songs and fitting tribute to the late lead singer.
True to form, the title is not featured at all in the lyrics and the Peter Saville's bronze embossed sleeve was a stylish affair further fuelling the Factory-band enigma with more than a touch of class. There were of course no proper band photos or any such conformist nonsense and even the lyrics published in Smash Hits were 'unofficial' as the bandstaed they were open to interpretation. A cracking single which Joy Division fans religiously purchased, and were not disappointed.

That said, New Order were still struggling to find their own musical identity, trying to shake off Curtis' legacy while at the same time keeping their indie-miserablist appeal. Ceremony's gloom-laden B side "In A Lonely Place" was their own homage to Curtis, visiting his grave, lamenting his passing and still wishing "you were here with me now". You can almost feel the driving rain dripping down the collars of their trench coats.

The band would go in to re-record Ceremony later in the year having taken on board drummer Stephen Morris's girlfriend Gillian Gilbert on guitar. The ensuing album Movement was still a pretty miserable affair, although an interest by band members in electronic instruments and new computer technology - albeit still rather cumbersome - meant that they would go on to develop their cross-over sound in future single releases. A couple of years later, Blue Monday was invented, the indie-dance divide finally broken down, no mercy shown...